Adventures in the Forbidden Forest
by ceirdwenfc
Summary: Albus Potter, Rose Weasley and Scorpius Malfoy are in the Forbidden Forest after dark. Originally written for yay potterkids on LJ-go check out the artwork attached to these four stories.
1. Chapter 1 Are You Cold?

"We were supposed to be back an hour ago."

"Do you think they're looking for us?"

Rose shrugged. "How do I know?"

Albus looked at his cousin sharply, noting her tone. She sounded flip, but he knew she was just as nervous as he was. He looked around, trying to see through the dark past the trees, deciding which was the way back to the castle. He shivered, running his hands over his arms. "Are you cold, Rosie?"

"No, why?"

"Neither am I." He wasn't cold exactly, but he still shivered. He looked over his shoulder. "Did you hear that?"

"Hear what? All I hear is your whinging."

"I'm not whinging. I heard something. Didn't you hear it?" he whispered insistently.

She opened her mouth to reply but stopped suddenly, peering over his shoulder. He was afraid to turn around, but then the sound was there again. _Crack_. A twig. And then another, resonating through the still forest until it echoed over and over. Twigs cracking under now running feet. There was a flash of white hair. Albus thought it was a unicorn until the boy with the pale blond hair crashed into him, knocking him over.

"Thank Merlin, I found you," Scorpius cried out, hugging Albus as he lay on the ground. "Everyone's been so worried."

Albus pushed him off. "We're fine. We were just heading back."

Rose helped them both up. "All that racket you've made, Scorpius. You've turned us around. Which is the way back?"

His eyes widened and his shoulders slumped. He sat on the ground and Albus joined him in sulking.

"Did you bring your wand?"

"No. You?"

"Professor Longbottom wouldn't let us collect the mushrooms with magic."

"Are you cold?"

"No. You?"

"No."

"Rose, did you hear that?" both boys asked in unison.

Rose shook her head with a sniff and moved away from their whinging. She knew someone would find them. Eventually.


	2. Chapter 2 Spiders

Rose leaned against the tree, staring out into the dark. The two boys were asleep. She turned her head, listening to the sounds of the Forbidden Forest. _What now_, she thought. "I suppose we could wait until daylight," she mumbled. _But then what about the wild animals_? Didn't her father mention large spiders in the Forest? She rubbed her hands over her arms, cringing at the thought. She wasn't afraid of spiders; she continued to tell herself over and over again.

Her head jerked up. _What was that sound?_ Scurrying? Like spiders? Giant spiders? _No, no. There were no more giant spiders in the Forest_. Her mother told her that, and her mother was the smartest witch she knew. Well, the smartest witch after Uncle George. It was probably a bunny rabbit. A fluffy, tan bunny rabbit. Those scurry.


	3. Chapter 3 What Have I Done?

Rose stirred, opening her eyes. She was surprised that it was still dark out. _When would the daylight come_? She looked around their small space. Scorpius' bright hair shone in the waning moonlight. She looked for Albus' dark head to be somewhere near their friend's, but the lump that should have been her cousin was nowhere to be seen.

She sat up straight, wide awake now. "Scorpius, wake up. Wake up. Scorpius!"

He rolled his lanky frame over, stretching out his arms, the tips of his finger brushing in the grass and leaves above his head. "Is it morning yet?" he yawned.

"No, it's not morning yet. Where's Albus?"

"Isn't he sleeping? Like I was?" He smirked at her before looking around the clearing. The look on his face changed as he realized that she wasn't winding him up. "Where is he?" He sat up, crossing his legs and looking around.

"That's what I asked you, isn't it?" She turned away from him, muttering, "Idiot," under her breath.

Scorpius stood up and continued stretching. He looked around, squinting. "Al!" he shouted. "Al! Where are you?"

He felt something hit him in the back of the head. He turned to face Rose.

"Why'd you do that?"

"Be quiet," she hissed. "Do you want to attract an animal or something worse?"

"Well, how are we supposed to find him if I can't call out his name?"

Rose had walked away from him, shaking her head. "You look over there; I'll look over here," she whispered, adding, "and be quiet." She didn't look to see if Scorpius followed her directions. She knew that he would; he always did. She kicked the leaves as she wandered, whispering Albus' name, hoping he would answer. _What was he thinking_?She shook her head in disgust at her cousin.

She heard the rustling above her head, and looked up in time to see the figure falling – or was it jumping – out of the tree. She went to move aside, but wasn't fast enough. The figure was heavier than it looked, and it knocked her down, taking the wind right out of her. Her eyes dimmed and her head felt like it was going to explode. She tried to roll over, onto her back, but her eyes were blurry now, and the last thing she heard was a boy's voice, vaguely familiar.

"What have I done?"


	4. Chapter 4 Where Am I?

She could feel her body beginning to awaken. She heard the bickering, a raised whispering and an uneasy sob. Albus. She couldn't remember what happened. She decided to keep her eyes closed. Her head hurt like mad and she wasn't sure what that smell was. Pine or tar, she didn't know. _Where am I?_ she thought. She let herself relax and realized that she was on a soft mattress. She sank deeper into it and still heard the voices from the other side of her eyelids.

"It wasn't my fault."

"You're the one who jumped on her."

"I thought she was a bear."

"I told her to let me call you, but she told me to shut it."

"She actually told you to shut it?"

"She did. She's a nasty –"

Rose cleared her throat and sat up on her elbows, her eyes open, staring at her cousin and their best friend. She didn't need to say anything, merely looking at them. Rose knew that Albus would be the first to crack. She had learned that look from their grandmother. Scorpius was too spoiled to crack under the weight of the Weasley gaze, but she knew that Albus would. And he did.

Albus rushed over to the bed, throwing himself across Rose's legs. "Oh, Rose, I'm so sorry. I didn't know that it was you. I really didn't. I was so scared."

"Why were you in the tree, Al?" she asked gently, brushing through his tangled hair.

"I woke up and I kept hearing things in the Forest. I went to investigate."

_Just like a Ravenclaw_, she thought. "Then what happened, Al?"

"I thought I'd wait in the tree. It was tall, and I could keep a better watch. I saw Scorpius looking around, and I heard him whinging about something –"

"Yeah, that something was that you were missing. I'll know better next time."

"Will you shut it and let me finish?"

Scorpius crossed his arms over his chest and let out a huff, which both Al and Rose ignored.

"So, I went up the tree, and I could see the castle, so I thought I'd wake you both and we could go, but then I heard him," Al jerked his thumb in Scorpius' direction, and continued, "whinging and then I saw this big, gigantic, _huge_ animal and I thought it was going to attack you –"

"It was me you idiot!"

"Well, I thought it would attack you, so I jumped on it and I got it first, didn't I?"

Rose began to laugh. "You sure did." She looked around the large room in the hospital wing. "How did I get here?"

"We carried you," Al said.

"You need to lay off the pudding," Scorpius added, smirking at the filthy look she gave him.

They could hear an uproar starting in the corridor outside the room. "Has Mum been here yet?"

"No," Al answered, looking alarmed that Hermione Weasley was about to enter. "Do you think she'll be upset with me?"

There was no answer. As the door swung open to admit Hermione, Rose had "collapsed" back onto her pillow, her breathing evening out and she tried not to giggle, picturing the horrified look on Albus' face as she heard him explaining what had happened in between Hermione's tut-tuts and soothing stroking of Rose's hair. Rose thought she might even fall asleep.


End file.
